Neatsfoot oil vs. Saddle oil

D

darkmatter35

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Aug 21, 2011
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Can saddle oil be used to preserve, restore or condition leather as in building sheaths, in place of neatsfoot oil? They have different properties (silicone and lanolin in saddle oil) but seem to be made to achieve the same goal.
It seems that most of us use neatsfoot oil exclusively and has me wondering why. I treated two test pieces and really can't tell much of a difference in discoloration. Maybe the neatsfoot is vary slightly darker, but almost no difference that I can see. I must be missing something.
John
 
John, I don't think you are missing a thing. I would not hesitate to use the two interchangeably and further the, method and amounts of application would be the same. Use very sparingly apply one light coat and check results, re-apply only if necessary.....less is not only better it's just about right. I think the biggest difference in the two is when they were developed for use with Neatsfoot being the first by a large margin, hence it has had more time to develop a following.

Paul
 
Vinnie, I've used and been around so many of these leather liquids for so long that I have become "nose blind". I don't notice the odor of almost any of them. Barge cement and thinner still get through to me at times but it's tolerable. NeatLac (now Wyosheen) is another that's fairly intense.

Let me be quick to say that the fact that I am "nose blind" does NOT make any of these products less noxious and/or hazardous to your health. If I could go back I would most probably wear breathing protection. I was, and am smart enough to work in a well ventilated area.

Paul
 
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I'd agree that they are interchangeable oils. The idea was that saddlers oil was a little more refined and you would have less oil transfer to your jeans from sitting on your saddle after freshly oiling it, or more so for the saddle maker not doing the same thing to his customer. I've seen many a cowboy swing down from his pony and it looks like he'd been riding an old oil can. Olive oil was popular too to add color Wasn't uncommon for folks to mix em together too to achieve different color results.

I'd had my new saddle for about 6/7 months before I got my tapaderos (stirrup covers). They were by different makers although my buddy who made me the tapaderos got the leather from our mutual friend the saddlemaker so they would match as close as possible. However there was a considerable color difference just from the use and sunlight the saddle had seen. Couple coats of olive oil on the taps matched em right up. Sonny, "the Battleship" after a hard day of knocking cattle down out of the high country:

PLuc0lM.jpg


Ya can see the taps and the saddle match pretty well after that treatment.

Vinnie I guess I've never really noticed the smell of the neatsfoot either. Had some warming up in the crockpot the other day and a shop visitor commented it kinda smelled like beef stew going on the long slow simmer on the back of the stove.

I've been using a different glue than Barge for years. Sure helps to keep the brain cells.
 
Thanks Paul and Dave for sharing so much knowledge and information. It makes leather working so much fun.
Vinnie, you might like the smell of saddle oil better than neatsfoot oil :)
 
Tried to link it for ya Claude but the Home Depot site wasn't responding. Anyhoo its Weldwood brand in the green can (non flammable) contact cement made by Dap. It might even be a stronger bond than Barge. I buy it by the gallon. Easy on the head too.
 
I switched to Weldwood awhile back myself. Vinnie turned me on to it as a suggestion to see if it improved the glue lines on my edges (which it did). I like it a lot better than the Barge so far.
 
I tried linking again but their site is still down. Yeah very minimal lines. I put it in squeeze ketchup bottle from the dollar store and apply it with disposable foam brushes
 
Yes it is. Made for indoor construction use. Economical too.
 
Horsewright said:
Yes it is. Made for indoor construction use. Economical too.
Click to expand...

I was cruising some reviews of the nonflammable Weldwood and saw that it can be cleaned up with water, does water break the glue down after it's cured?

I'm pretty happy with Barge but wouldn't mind something less funky smelling one bit.
 
Doesn't seem to. I've been using it for years now and have had many products in use in some very wet conditions. I've not noticed any separation.
 
The saddle oil like Fiebings is made of neatsfoot oil with the addition of lanolin for softness and silicone for water repellant. I've been using saddle oil for years on jackets and motorcycle luggage but used to use both products interchangeably on horse saddles and tack. Both work fine. Just don't overdo it and conversely don't let your leather dry out. Once it's cracked, it's damaged.
 
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